Help Me With My Iceland Book Cover Choice Please!
 

My self pubbed account of our rather stormy Iceland trip last summer is almost finished. The one great problem that remains is the cover! I have 3 to choose from before the investment of time goes into making it a proper one. I have decided to open it up to a vote since myself and my partner in crime completely disagree as to which is the best!

If you would be so kind as to head over to this post, check out the covers, and vote for one I would be very very happy! Comments or suggestions would make me even happier!

You can find the post here:

Help Us Choose A Book Cover For My Iceland Memoir - Unleash Your Adventure

Thanks!

I think the first one is a mre exiciting picture, but the third one suits the front cover of a book better.

2 is best of what's available to choose from, IMHO. 1 ok. 3 definitely not.

Good luck.

Chris

As a Ex Professional Photographer, I have had some of my artwork used on books.
I pers like 1 & 3 however I think I have seen a similar photo to 3 on another book cover?
So 3 out
1 is ok for the Motorcyclist, to have the idea of Adventure.
2 shows the Tundra and indicates Camping & motorcycling.

overall 2 would be my choice if you are after a wider spectrum of readers.

Cover #1 looks best to me, followed closely by cover #2. Cover #3 looks too generic.

Best of luck.

I like #1 best

Thanks guys! I think the battle is between 1 and 2. I like number 2, Patrick likes number 1, and very few seem to like number 3. But perhaps number 3 would be nice on the back of the book with us riding away instead of riding towards the camera.

My editor who has read the entire thing likes number 1 as well. I will let the poll run until Sunday and then decide so that there is time to properly create the cover!


Waaaaaaa, but in a good way. :-)

:D

No. 2
 

2 is definitely in tune with the title.

1 could just be a rocky little road somewhere.

3 is a style already much used.

Good luck whatever you choose.

Hi

Just to be a bit of a kill joy, number 1 doesn't look much like a track? More like a stream bed? So doesn't "appear" to sit well with the "no off-roading" that applies slightly confusingly to the whole country?

:(

#1 I like the best.
#2 Bit more friendly.
#3 Very common.

Good luck, and saludos.

Number 2

No Illegal Off Roading Done! Promise! :-)
 

Not a kill joy at all grizzly, that was one thing I wrote in the book, you dont need to do offroading because the sanctioned roads in the interior are off road enough! To seek out extra off roading is disrespectful because it takes forever for the landscape to repair itself. With roads like that one why would you even bother except to be completely selfish?

That picture is from an abandoned track, but still within the wooden pegs that marked it as a once cared for track. We were on the way to the Kverkfjöll ice caves in (just past Askja) and we did not have a gps. We followed the wrong road and ended up on that road which I nicknamed the road of death. 10 minutes past that road is a sign welcoming you to another area of the national park. Not an easy ride, but one of the most spectacular rides we have done in Iceland.

I'm a great believer in first impressions for this type of thing - it's what's going to get people to pull it off the shelf and have a look. No 1 did that for me. There was a definite emotional impact.

No 2 then had the opposite effect and calmed me down.

No 3 looked a bit generic. A good picture but I instantly thought South America rather than Iceland as I've seen similar stuff from there.

So, for me the choice was between "wild" or "mild". I went for wild - but when I then showed it to my wife her reflex preference was for the calm campsite of no 2. :confused1::confused1::confused1:.

backofbeyond, that is where we are! We cant choose between the first 2 covers! And most people seem to really like one or the other. Not easy!!!

Patrick says the exact same thing, that number one has much more of an emotional punch that would get the readers interested, but when I look at the cover of number 2 I just want to jump on the bike and go somewhere, which is the feeling that I like! :scooter:

Yep, #1 is for riders; I look at the photo and I can feel the cobbles shifting and the bike bounding along. #2 isn't as good for riders, but it's more likely to pull in the huge demographic who would like to think that they'll take a motorcycling trip some day. There are a lot more of them than there are of us.

Not that there's anything wrong with that. So who are you trying to sell the book to? In other words, who is it written to? In my mind, the cover is supposed to support the writing; it's not supposed to stand on its own.

I'd be more likely to purchase #1. Hope that's helpful.

Mark

I vote the3rd...!

Hi Sherrie,

I have voted and chosen number 1 as both 2 and 3 remind me of other photos on other covers.

Number 1 has the ruggedness of Iceland and is an unusual shot.

What book programme are you using?

Steve

Mark the book is written with riders in mind, but I hoped that it was well rounded enough that anyone who wanted to read about a trip through Iceland would like it. But it is written from the viewpoint that the best way to see the country is by motorcycle. :-P

Steve the cover was created with Inkscape, but not by me. I would throw the laptop out the window before I was able to create anything. My patience and skills do not extend to visual creativity. :-P

I think I will end up going with number one in the end. I think it will mean that riders are more likely to find it and want to read it, and anyone who is not a rider will buy it knowing what to expect. A book is judged by its cover!

Photo 1 is probably a good choice for your target audience which would include a higher proportion of men than women I imagine. Y chromosome would be drawn to a tale of danger and challenging adventure more than a tale of romance and adventure that is depicted in photo 2.

Not that there's anything wrong with romance and adventure.

Kindest regards,
John Downs

When will the book be in the shops (or amazon) ?

Are you planning to sell the book in print or as an e-book?

While No 1 is a great picture, on the shelf it might look dull. Too grey.
No 2 or even 3 catches the eye a bit more.
But then again that might not matter if your target market is already converted adventure riders.

I think cover #1 is too rugged and while it may appeal to the more hardcore, will not attract the more casual reader.

Cover #3 is too 'Long Way Round', or as someone said 'too generic', though it does have the scenery.

That leaves cover #2, but though I feel it is the best, I don't think it is a very strong picture and would look for something else if possible. Maybe mask out the bikes at the right hand side of the tent as these are a distraction to the picture and if playing in Photoshop would take the bike in the left hand side and bring it into the foreground nearer the tents. After all it is about biking.

Grey Beard

Thanks Everyone
 

I am now going to bed (its almost 12 am in Thailand) and I am going to sleep on it, but it looks like number one will be my cover! Voting on the unleash blog put it at number one at 42%, and it seems to be the one that brings the biggest reaction. I may (MAY) do 2 covers, the 1st one for the e book version and the second one for the print. I really like the 2nd one myself, but at the same time I do want the book to be read! My editor likes the 1st one as well (and she has read the book in its entirety and does not ride) so that is weighing heavy with me. But I am with Grey Beard, I am a little afraid the 1st one will scare away those who are not hardcore. And the book is not a hardcore tale, even if some of the riding was.

Lets see how it goes! I plan on doing the e book first, releasing it by the end of this month, if I get angry letters about how the cover left readers disappointed with the contents I will publish the print with the other cover and pull the 1st version and replace it with cover number 2. The joys of self publishing an e book! There is some flexibility even after publication!

Do you have any action/bike shots available that have colour? That are punchy?

I agree with realmc26. I think the picture #1 is too dull and grey. Have a look at front covers of books in similar genres (on Amazon for example): How many have a colourful cover, how many various shades of grey? I believe close to 100% will have a colourful cover.

People buy a book because they want to read the words, but they will only take it off the shelf if it catches their eye. If nobody takes it off the shelf...

Good luck with whatever you choose.

Chris

Don't want to confuse the issue more but I really like the photo at the top of your blog.

The rocky road is the one that promises the most excitement and adventure. If you had this picture with some association with stormy weather, or torrent of water, then it would match the title better.

The other two give me the impression of a nice bike trip with perhaps some inclement weather. The third one is a good picture but has been done many times before.

Just saw lonely planet named Iceland as the top destination for 2012. Good timing for you!

IMHO only, if you are committed to number 1 I think you need to reformat it if you hope to appeal to a wider market other than those already interested in adventure motorcycling.

If I am buying a book for myself and especially for somebody else, perhaps as a gift, how the cover looks is a huge factor.
The way it is formatted now its not an eye catcher. It is a great photo but as is the cover is drab.
Surely you could frame it somehow with some sort of colour which catches the eye and draws attention towards the picture.
As is, for the browser in a book shop it may be easy to miss it in a grey blur as they scan the shelves.

Whatever you decide I hope it goes well. (i'll probably get the e-book anyhow:wink3:)

#1 is the only one that would make me pick the book up off the shelf.

Good luck Sara

Thanks everyone! I am going to go with number 1 and have it worked on a little more. But before the time was invested I wanted an idea on which one should be worked on!
Chris: The blog header is from Argentina! I love it too, but it was before I was a rider, that bike is Patrick's old one.

And realmMC (as well as everyone else) you dont need to buy the book as I plan to send a pm to all of you with a free download of the e book version as a thank you. But you need to wait 2 weeks. :-P

Awesome! Thanks.

Thanks Again
 

Thanks again everyone! I sent you all PM's with the coupon code for a free download of the book, so if you did not get one please PM me for one. I hope you enjoy it and as I said in this blog post

Iceland: A Stormy Motorcycle Journey E-book Is Out! - Unleash Your Adventure

I am open to comments as long as they come with a reason. Unless you love it of course, then you can love it without having to justify your reasons. :-P

I went for majority rules on the cover, so number one it is. But it is self pubbed and an e book, it can be changed if that turns out to be a disaster. I am curious if you think the cover matches the book.

Either way, thanks a million again! I really appreciated it.